How Do You Check If a Keyword Is Too Competitive?

i usually check the top ranking pages first to see if newer or smaller sites have a chance to rank search volume alone isn’t enough if the results match the search intent and the competition looks manageable i’d give the keyword a try

Don't trust keyword difficulty scores too much. Just Google the keyword and check who's actually ranking. If you see Reddit threads or small blogs on page one, there's probably room for a new site too. Search volume means nothing if you can't get anywhere near the first page.

I check the top 10 Google results, their backlinks, content quality, and search intent. For a new blog, I prioritize long-tail keywords where smaller websites are already ranking. Search volume matters, but realistic ranking opportunities matter more.

I suggest you search for that keyword to see who your competitors are. If they are major, highly recognizable brands, your chances of success will be very low. I would advise you to abandon that keyword and focus on ones that are more manageable for you.

usually check the top 10 Google results domain authority content quality and search intent smaller websites are already ranking its often a good opportunity for a new blog.

Another thing to watch for is whether Google is crowding the top with ads, shopping carousels, and AI overviews. Even if a keyword is easy to rank for, the actual click-through rate might be dead.

For a new one targeting specific longtail KWs with clear intent is usually a better starting point than going after broad, high volume ones.

I tend to look for the top 10 results If most of those are high authority sites then it can be hard for a new blog to compete. However if there are some long tail keywords with clear search intent and low competition then that’s when I’ll get excited Sometimes low volume keywords with low competition are a much better option for new blogs

For a new blog, the easiest way to do keyword research is to look for keywords with 30-70 monthly searches.
Yes you read it right.
If you focus on keywords with this search volume, you'll more often find easy to rank opportunities.

Also, check whether the top 10 results are DR70+ websites or not. If more than 8 of the top 10 results are from DR70+ websites, I would ignore that keyword.

In my experience, every time I've focused on keywords with 30-70 monthly searches, completed a topical cluster, and published 5-6 articles covering that cluster (with around 20 articles already on my website), I've managed to get some rankings and traffic from Google.

Remember, not many people target keywords with such low search volumes. All that matters for a new website is getting that first boost of traffic.

Once Google starts trusting your website, you can move on to keywords with higher search volumes.

Another benefit of targeting keywords with 30-70 monthly searches is that you're usually targeting long-tail keywords. Once your website starts ranking for a few long-tail keywords, it may also begin ranking for some mid volume keywords naturally.

Hope this helps!